WEST VIRGINIA CODE

(a) No program licensed pursuant to this article may disclose,
reveal or releaseor be compelled to disclose, reveal or release,
any written records or personal or personally identifying
information about a program participant created or maintained in
providing services, regardless of whether the information has been
encoded, encrypted, hashed, or otherwise protected, pursuant to
this article except:

(1) Upon written consent, or upon oral consent in emergency
situations defined by legislative rule, of the person seeking or
who has sought services from the program;

(2) In any proceeding brought under sections four and five,
article six, chapter nine of this code or article six, chapter
forty-nine of this code;

(3) As mandated by article six-a, chapter forty-nine and
article six, chapter nine of this code;

(4) Pursuant to an order of any court based upon a finding
that said information is sufficiently relevant to a proceeding
before the court to outweigh the importance of maintaining the
confidentiality established by this section;

(5) To protect against a clear and substantial danger of
imminent injury by a person receiving services to himself or
herself or another; or

(6) As authorized by the releases signed by batterer
intervention and prevention program participants pursuant to the provisions of subsection (b) of this section.

(b) Batterer intervention and prevention program participants
shall authorize the release of information by signing the following
releases:

(1) Allowing the provider to inform the victim or alleged
victim and the victim's advocates that the batterer is
participating in a batterer intervention and prevention program
with the provider and to provide information to the victim or
alleged victim and her or his advocates, if necessary, for the
victim's or alleged victim's safety;

(2) Allowing prior and current service providers to provide
information about the batterer to the provider;

(4) Allowing the provider to report to the court, if the
participation was court ordered, and to the victim or alleged
victim, if she or he requests and provides a method of
notification, and to his or her advocate, any assault, failure to
comply with program requirements, failure to attend the program,
threat of harm by the batterer, reason for termination and
recommendations for changes in the court order; and

(5) Allowing the provider to report to the victim or alleged victim, or his or her advocate, without the participant's
authorization, all perceived threats of harm, the participant's
failure to attend and reason for termination.

(c) Monitored parenting and exchange programs may disclose to
one parent or guardian, without the permission of the other parent
or guardian, any perceived threat of harm or violation of the court
order or violation of the monitored parenting and exchange program
rules by the other parent or guardian.

(d) No monitored parenting and exchange program may release
information about the child without consent of the parent with
custodial responsibility or guardian.

(e) In addition to the provisions set forth in this section,
the release of a victim's personally identifying information is
subject to the provisions of 42 U.S.C. § 13925(b)(2).

(f) No consent or authorization for the transmission or
disclosure of confidential information is effective unless it is
signed by the program participant whose information is being
disclosed. Every person signing an authorization shall be given a
copy.

(g) A victim of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual
assault, or stalking shall not be required to provide consent to
release his or her personally identifying information as a
condition of eligibility for the services, nor may any personally
identifying information be shared in order to comply with federal
or state reporting, evaluation, or data collection requirements: Provided, That nothing in this section prohibits a program from
reporting suspected abuse or neglect, as defined by law, when the
program is mandated by law to report suspected abuse or neglect.

Note: WV Code updated with legislation passed through the 2016 Regular Session
The West Virginia Code Online is an unofficial copy of the annotated WV Code, provided as a convenience. It has NOT been edited for publication, and is not in any way official or authoritative.